Biopsyc EXAM #1

Transcription

- (genetics) the organic process whereby the DNA sequence in a gene is copied into mRNA.

- location: nucleus

- unzips DNA molecule to create 2 strands

Translation

- (genetics) the process whereby genetic information coded in mRNA directs the formation of a specific protein at a ribosome in the cytoplasm.

- location: outside of nucleus

How are proteins made?

Transcription and translation; DNA to RNA to Protein

- transcripts must be translated into chains of amino acids, which later fold into proteins

- important because proteins can change shape

physiological psychology

- (know specifics of example) examines neural mechanisms of behavior using surgical, electrical, and chemical manipulation in controlled experiments with lab animals

- ex: VMH lesioning in rats

psychopharmacology

- similar to physiological psychology but focuses on manipulation of neural activity and behavior with drugs. Also study reward systems and factors involved in substance use and addiction

- Fen-Phen

neuropsychology

- examines the psychological and behavioral effects of brain damage in human patients

- you can't always see brain damage -- even with modern brain imaging

Psychophysiology

- study the relationship between brain activity and psychological processes in humans, typically using non-invasive imaging techniques

- MRI (to see soft tissue), fMRI (functional, can show activity), PET scans (most often used to look at brain activity with radioactive glucose), CAT scans, EEG (electrodes on head to see where activity is)

comparative psychology

- compares behavior of different species with a focus on genetics and evolution. Can provide insights into how human brain works and reveal new ways to solve problems

- ex: seed caching. hippocampal volume and memory for stored food in birds.

ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH)

- the part of the hypothalamus that tells you to stop eating

- when lesioned, rats will become obese as they do not know when to stop eating.

comparative psychology research examining hippocampus size in various species of Jays

- Hippocampus is smaller in birds who don't seed cache, the larger the hippocampus, the better the spatial memory. Birds who don't have food in the winter hide seeds in multiple locations to ensure they don't go hungry. It is important that these birds have incredible spatial memory so that they can easily recall where they hid seeds.

beliefs of ancient Egyptians regarding the brain

- Ancient Egyptians viewed the heart as more important than the brain because they thought that the heart was the center of a person's being and intelligence (did not think the brain was the source of mind and behavior).

beliefs of the physician who wrote the Edwin Smith Papyrus

- exception to the beliefs of ancient Egyptians (from same time)

- knew that lack of sensation in the body was due to nervous system damage, so they knew that the brain was connected to the body

CNS (central nervous system)

- brain and spinal cord

PNS (peripheral nervous system)

- the sensory and motor neurons that connect the CNS to the rest of the body

Thomas Willis

- Localization of abilities to brain tissue through longitudinal study of behavior followed by brain dissection

- The brain itself was the site of mental functions, Willis argued, and he carried out experiments to show that different functions were localized in different regions

Galen

- believed that animal spirits were housed in ventricles and caused the body to move

- proved that pressing on the heart in human subjects did not lead to loss of consciousness or loss of sensation

Monism

- mind and brain are same thing

- the mind is a product of the brain

- Charles Darwin realized that the brain and behavior develop at the same time, so that brain and mind are one and the same

Dualism

- mind and brain are separate things

- Descartes equated mind with the conscious self and theorized on consciousness on the basis of mind/body dualism

Rene Descartes

- Agreed with dualism - mind and body are separate.

- Descartes said that the mind regulates behavior by directing the flow of ventricular fluid to appropriate muscles. The body is a machine, the mind is nonmaterial and interacts with the brain through ventricles. The brain controls simple behavior but mind is required for rational behavior.

leading proponent of phrenology

- Franz Joseph Gall

leading proponent of aggregate field view

- Pierre Flourens

Phrenology

- Involves judging a person's character by the location of bumps on their skull

- consistent with localization of function (the theory that specific parts of the brain control specific aspects of brain function)

Aggregate Field View

- says that all regions of the brain participate in all mental functions

- aligns with distribution of function (the brain processes information in a distributed manner)

Pierre Paul Broca

- His research provided clinical support for localization of function.

- Found that damage to Broca's area results in one being unable to produce coherent language, production issue, couldn't speak or write

Wilder Penfield

- He performed electrical brain stimulation of human epilepsy patients. He created functional maps for the motor and sensory cortex for use during brain surgery. He realized that there are multiple kinds of seizures that originate from multiple different parts of the brain. He would remove the part of the brain in which seizures were occurring (hopefully, when removing a part of the brain, he wouldn't remove an important part. So, he would conduct brain mapping before removing brain matter)

concordance rate

- the proportion of pairs of individuals that share a particular attribute, given that one of the individuals has that characteristic

Gustav Fritsch & Eduard Hitzig

- Fritsch and Hitzig electrically stimulated dogs' brains and found that this resulted in involuntary muscular movements in certain parts of the dog. They were able to identify the "motor strip" which controls different muscles of the body.

contributions of both genetics and experience to the development of depression

- around 50% is genetic

- 50% is unrelated to genes

Camillo Golgi

- created the Golgi stain (turns 1% of cells in cerebral cortex black)

- incorrectly argued for neurons being an interconnected network

Santiago Ramon y Cajal

- used Golgi stain on infant brain

- described neurons as separate entities

Cell body (Soma)

- contains the nucleus, mitochondria, ribosomes, and other structures

Dendrites

- branchlike parts of a neuron that receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body

- responsible for bringing in information from other neurons

Axon

- thin fiber of a neuron responsible for transmitting nerve impulses to other neurons, glands, or muscles

Sensory Neurons

- input

- specialized at one end to be highly sensitive to a particular type of stimulation (touch, temperature, odor, etc.)

Motor Neurons

- output

- a motor neuron has its soma in the spinal cord and receives excitation from other neurons and conducts impulses along its axon to a muscle

Interneurons (intrinsic neurons)

- information stays WITHIN a structure

Afferent Neurons

- information TOWARDS a structure

Efferent Neurons

- information AWAY from a structure

Names for the different classes of synapses

- Axo-dendritic synapse (most common)

- Axo-somatic synapse (second common)

- Axo-axonic synapse (rare)

Where do most synapses occur?

- between axons and dendrites

white matter

- myelinated axons

gray matter

- cell bodies

schwann cells (PNS)

- forms a single myelin sheath around an axon (how it differs from oligodendrocytes)

- forms myelin in PNS

oligodendrocytes (CNS)

- forms multiple sheaths around different axons (how it differs from schwann cells)

- forms myelin in CNS

astrocyte

- Help synchronize activity of related axons. Remove waste, especially after cell death. - participate in the formation of the blood brain barrier

radial glia

- guide migration of neurons and growth of axons and dendrites during development

microglia

- weak immune system of the CNS

- digest parts of dead neurons

interpreting results of twin and adoption studies with respect to the nature and nurture question

- Twin and adoption studies can be used to separate the effects of genetics from the social environment of rearing, and twin studies can often give clues to the importance of biological environmental factors.

Primary Strucutre of Protein

- linear sequence of amino acids

secondary structure of protein

- contains regions of amino acid chains that are stabilized by hydrogen bonds from the polypeptide backbone

tertiary structure of protein

- refers to the 3-dimensional structure of an entire polypeptide chain

quaternary structure of protein

- 3-dimensional arrangement of subunits in a multisubunit protein

dendritic branches

- allows dendrites of one neuron to establish connections with other neurons

dendritic spines

- short outgrowths that increase the surface area available for synapses

historical belief regarding the primary role of glial cells

- originally thought to only provide support, protection, and nutrition and facilitate conduction for the neurons they surround

- after more detailed studies, glial cells have also been implicated in important developmental mechanisms, such as guiding migration of neurons in early development, forming the necessary scaffold for neuronal architecture, being critical participants in synaptic transmission, as key regulators of neurotransmitter release, as well as other functions